News of Josh Hull‘s Test debut will have felt like a fever dream to the 20-year-old, and not just because he was wearing multi-coloured briefs at the time.
The left-arm quick was batting in the outdoor nets at the Kia Oval, decked out in rogue batting kecks over his shorts, which, at an imposing 6ft 7in, gave you an idea of what Superman might look like at Mardi Gras. Taking throws from assistant coach Paul Collingwood and Andrew Flintoff – subbing in for Marcus Trescothick who is about to assume interim duty of England’s white-ball teams – his session was briefly interrupted by a passing Brendon McCullum who had a quick word before moving on. A few seconds later, soon-to-be Test cap No.716 got back to batting.
All of this has happened in a flash. Ollie Pope had not spoken to Hull between the team being announced and Tuesday’s captain’s press conference, though he did face him in the nets. “He bowled really nicely so I was like, ‘yeah, he’s good to go!’.
Just 18 months ago, Hull was still turning out for Stamford School, having recently joined the Leicestershire academy from Northamptonshire. Two weeks ago, his inclusion as an injury replacement for Mark Wood felt like little more than work experience. Now, he could be on course to finish the summer with international caps in all three formats.
Evidently, the career statistics are moot: just 16 wickets at an average of 62.75 across a ten-match first-class career that began last summer. This season, he has taken two wickets in three Division Two appearances at an average of 182.50.
And yet, this is not the most bizarre selection of the last nine months, let alone the Bazball era. Shoaib Bashir for the tour of India wins that hands down; he was even more raw, picked similarly on height, and for altogether more unforgiving climes and circumstances. The fact that Bashir is now England’s primary spinner ought to prevent cynics from dismissing Hull’s selection as outright brainworms, although some will doubtless need convincing.
“Him even getting picked is going to give him a massive amount of confidence first,” Pope said, when asked about the fact that five previous debutants under McCullum and Ben Stokes have all taken five-wicket hauls. The most recent of those, Gus Atkinson, has 33 dismissals this summer and his presence in the XI for the third Test, alongside Olly Stone, offers enough extra zip to allow Hull to exhibit his “point of difference” immediately. As evidenced by the fact that an exclusively right-arm pace attack bested Sri Lanka last week on a slow Lord’s deck, England have not had to think outside the box to triumph this series.
Nevertheless, Hull is not simply playing because this is a dead rubber, even if England have a first perfect Test summer in 20 years in the offing. McCullum and bowling consultant James Anderson have been suitably impressed in the nets by decent pace in the mid-eighties and productive shape into the right-handers.
It is not all that dissimilar to the events of Josh Tongue‘s debut in 2023. Chris Woakes had initially been set to return to the XI for the one-off Test against Ireland at Lord’s, before Tongue bowled so well on the Nursery Ground that McCullum felt compelled to let him loose.
By contrast, England opted against giving Dillon Pennington a go in the third Test against West Indies earlier this year, despite the fact the series was won. While they were unsure about his readiness despite some impressive early-season form, they did not feel he would add anything different to an attack that also included Stokes. That Matthew Potts is the one to make way this week, having bowled valiantly in the second Test albeit in an all-right attack where he was neither the quickest nor most skilful, speaks to the enchantment with Hull.
“When you have a left-arm option, a point of difference, obviously being a batter myself, I know the impact it can have,” Pope said. “I think as well, naturally, left-handers can create some pretty good footmarks for offspinners, and we found a pretty good one of them, so that’s pretty handy as well.
“We’ve decided to go with four seamers and one spinner again and that’s a great way for him [Hull] to introduce his skills into this side and provide a point of difference.”
It is important at this juncture to point out that this is not totally a bolt from the blue. Those at Leicestershire noted Hull’s talents early on and many of them believed he had the capacity to go on and play for England, though perhaps not this soon. Former England fast bowler Dean Headley, who was Hull’s director of cricket at Stamford School, described him as “farmer-stock strong” on the latest Sky Cricket podcast. It was in a barn on his father’s farm near Oundle that a net was installed to allow Hull to hone his skills during lockdown.
If you can announce yourself in a competition played out in the shadow of another, far bigger one, then Hull did just that in 2023. His 17 wickets in 2023’s Metro Bank Cup helped Leicestershire to their first List A trophy in 38 years, holding his nerve in the final to defend eight off the last over.
At the time, his name did not feature on a long-list of potential fast bowlers, but England’s interest in him was piqued. At the start of this summer, men’s managing director Rob Key namechecked Hull as one to watch and it was no surprise when he featured in tour games ahead of the West Indies and Sri Lanka series, for a County Select XI and England Lions, respectively. The latter saw him take five wickets across two innings, and leave an impression on Sri Lanka opener Dimuth Karunaratne, who noted his improvement in the second innings after a tricky start in the first.
Most of Hull’s cricket to date has been played with a white ball, and this season has been no different. He picked 18 T20 Blast wickets but he failed to make an impression in the men’s Hundred, having been drafted for £40,000 by Manchester Originals. And to extrapolate all of this is to understand the fear that, maybe, this is all a bit much too soon.
At the same time, this England management have not put a foot wrong on the selection front. And while it is true that Hull is not a Test cricketer on merit, recent history suggests he could soon earn enough to remain one.